The back pan is slowly
receiving water from the Diep River and the Flamingos have
responded! Nice numbers have been reported this month. They
are mostly to be seen in the South Lake from the roadside on
the R27. I seem to see the Fish Eagle pair most days this
month, first hearing them as they call (while overflying my
flat). Last week during a visit, our adult pair were each
sitting on a pole very close to the hide, when a juvenile
Fish Eagle flew over. It wasn't one of their offspring, so I
thought they would chase it off, but they ignored it
completely! The Marsh Harriers are doing plenty of
quartering back and forward across the reed beds, and I saw
a Mongoose catch first one Striped Mouse, kill it, then
another, kill that one, and sit in a complete quandary not
knowing which one to pick up and carry off! He wandered off,
mouseless, having not found a solution to his problem. A
male Rock Kestrel and lone Lanner Falcon have decided the
boardwalk rails are a good resting place, but not when they
both turn up at the same time!

We have pleasure in informing you that we now have a
website! The site concentrates mostly on the Wetland but
also has a short history of the Friends of Rietvlei. The
address is above under our email address - please check out
our site and let us know what you think.

BIG Project

The Cape Bird Club has
started a new project, the Birds in Gardens Project (BIG).
The sad reality is that a very small percentage of South
Africa's land area is conserved. This means that most birds
live and breed in areas transformed by man. The BIG Project
gives you a chance to monitor birds in your garden - one of
the most valuable man-transformed habitats for birds. This
project is not confined to Bird Club members only, so if you
would like to be part of BIG, contact Kirsten Louw on 021
794 1054 (H) or email
kst@yebo.co.za .

Renewals

We have not received many membership renewals yet - if you
have lost your renewal form, you can still post a cheque to
our address as above, or email us or phone me on 557-4990.

Many members who joined us on our outing to Blouvlei in
Century City a couple of years ago, have asked when this
area would be open to the public. Boats run infrequently,
but you can now access the area from the Montague Drive side
(the same way we entered on our outing). There is a parking
area next to the bridge over the canal and entry is R5 per
person. Please phone the Call Centre on 021 552-6889 for
further directions.

Volunteers Needed

Once again, we are asking for members to step forward and
volunteer their services as Committee Members. The same
members serve year after year, but the work load grows
larger annually. The rapid growth of areas north of Table
View and proposed developments around Milnerton and Table
View needs committed residents from the area to keep an eye
on environmental concerns that might negatively affect
Rietvlei Wetland. We are an influential group, but if we
don't have members to represent us on various Environmental
Liaison Committees, our concerns will not be heard. Please
contact us (021 557-4990).

Snippets

The Wastewater Treatment Works Expansion programme and our
objections to it are going to be detailed in letters to the
Table Talk from Rob Robertson over the next few weeks and we
urge all members to read these letters.

Most of the alien vegetation on the dune areas between the
sea and the R27 has been removed and we will be organising a
walk through this area in Spring to see how effective this
removal has been.

Please note that we will not be having any evening meetings
until September 2002, as we feel it is unfair to expect you
to sit in a cold Aquatic Club hall!